MOONFALL... Directed by: Roland Emmerich - a Joe Viglione Film Review #JoeViglioneMedia

 MOONFALL... Directed by: Roland Emmerich - a Joe Viglione Film Review

                For those who enjoy extreme drama and outer space, Moonfall will fit the bill with some captivating moments that outweigh the excesses.  See first five minutes of film here: https://youtu.be/RKtcfFrLuC0

      This generation probably has no idea of the mega disaster films from Irwin Allen, the "Master of Disaster" of the big screen blow-everything-up genre some decades back.   His name ever present in the 1960s for Land of the Giants, Time Tunnel, Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea and Lost in Space maybe gave a hint that Allen would graduate to making fortunes on small budgets.  According to Wikipedia his The Poseidon Adventure made 125 mill in 1972 on a less than five million dollar budget; the follow-up, 1974's The Towering Inferno made $203.3 at a fourteen million dollar cost. These are huge numbers for the time (early 70s) without the massive worldwide returns on investment found today.

      Roland Emmerich has his formula, directly from the way that was paved by past gloom and doom visionaries, if we can call them that.  For the vision is destruction.

     Moonfall could be called an amazing film of sorts.  It's the new master, Emmerich, sweetening his formula with stunning visual effects and wonderful cinematography.  The ever present problem, which simultaneously makes tons of cash but weakens the artistic value, is that same old formula getting in the way of the "important art."

    The flaws from blockbuster Independence Day are transferred to Moonfall, while the pluses are enhanced and made all the more thrilling, until they go over the top.  Rather than restrain himself, which Emmerich is more than capable of doing, he always throws everything but the kitchen sink in your face, the difference between "subtle" Norman Bates as Alfred Hitchcock's terrifying slasher psycho, and the harsh blood 'n' guts of Friday the 13th, Saw, Nightmare on Elm Street: gore for gore's sake. 

    And unlike Irwin Allen's blockbusters chock full of A-list celebrity, Roland the E is a big tease with some star power, but not the bundle Irwin would drop on the unsuspecting world, star power that brought home the results.   Outside of Game of Thrones does anyone know who chubby John Bradley is? (the obligatory Harvey Fierstein-type character that was from Independence Day. Not overtly gay (this time,) but a pure mama's boy) while 86 years young Donald Sutherland is grossly underused, to the film's detriment.   Indeed, Sutherland's presence is downright morbid when his unique insight in these fictional situations always proves of value. 

    Patrick Wilson - now pushing 50, but still looking good - has always been likeable and despite all his work and vast industry wealth, Moonfall, with an ending that suggests a sequel, could put him onto that next level.  Given that it was a stormy night on February 3, 2022 when this film opened at 6 PM at the AMC in Burlington and I only counted nine individuals, two of them women (guys go for the sci-fi,) hope that's not a harbinger of ticket sales to come as this film does deserve a good shot.

    It's been six years since Independence Day: Resurgence (2016) which cost 165 million (Irwin Allen must be spinning,) and brought in "only" about three hundred and ninety million. Hardly impressive when  the original 1996 Independence Day did over 817 mill on a 75 million dollar budget.

       The intriguing thing about I.D. Resurgence is that Emmerich used more color, a more intriguing story line (for a sequel, especially) and better acting.  It was once again the hokey script with mawkishly sentimental poorly timed scenes that got in the way of the character development.  Indeed, the director actually uses the contrived moments to probably bring in the dollars, playing to the current slam bang audiences that would have adored TV's Lost in Space had they been born in the sixties.  For a purist, it can drive you crazy.   ID Resurgence AND Moonfall are closer to serious sci fi than previous efforts - 1998's horrible Godzilla with Matthew Broderick, one case in point, yet missing the target to get them into the "classic sci fi" realm they pose as.  Such a shame....so close, yet so far away.

     This time the current era's "Master of Disaster," goes beyond his own worlds to draw from Terminator Genisys for the A.I. villain.  Can James Cameron sue?  Probably not as the A.I. here is similar also to the creepy thing from the otherwise excellent Lucy from 2014 (with Scarlett Johansson.)  In addition to the out of control A.I. (becoming mundane, the concept so overused these days)  there's the Emperor's planet-killing space station from most of the Star Wars films which makes its way to planet Earth.  

     In this perspective - a hollowed out manufactured heavenly body shifting without Darth Vader's approval - Moonfall gets its second wind.  It's a self correction, Moonfall the movie correcting itself just as NASA seeks the moon's self correction.  Patrick Wilson, Halle Berry and John Bradley diving into the moon while meteors are hitting our home world that are what make this film somewhat great.  

    The slow intro to this motion picture, reminiscent of 1950's sci fi where kids were bored until the action kicked in, is brought back to haunt moviegoers. Such maudlin situations for Wilson's character, Brian Harper, discarded by his "work wife," Jocinda Fowler - played by science fiction film specialist Halle Berry (Catwoman, X Men, 007, etc.) Berry is good enough for the functional drama,  her star power letting her take a break from having to actually perform here. The actress is good, of course, because she's a sterling actress, and perhaps the lack of a superlative script has the entire group acting as if they are in a play at a comic book convention.

     Tighten up the intro, focus on the razzle dazzle of the Star Wars in and around the moon (it gets too close to planet Earth for your suspension of belief to kick in,) Moonfall comes close.  It just could have been a lot closer.

#JoeViglioneMedia review

MOONFALL
Official Site: https://moonfall.movie/
Facebook: @MoonfallFilm
Twitter: @MoonfallFilm
Instagram: @MoonfallFilm
Hashtag: #Moonfall

Genre: Sci-Fi
Rating: PG-13 for violence, disaster action, strong language, and
some drug use
U.S. Release Date: February 4, 2022
Running time: 124 min
Cast: Halle Berry, Patrick Wilson, John Bradley, Michael Peña,
Charlie Plummer, Kelly Yu, Eme Ikwuakor, Carolina Bartczak, and
Donald Sutherland
Directed by: Roland Emmerich
Written by: Roland Emmerich & Harald Kloser & Spenser Cohen
Produced by: Harald Kloser, p.g.a., Roland Emmerich, p.g.a.